Agriculture Secretary Endorses New Guidelines for Beef Trade

New BSE guidelines reflect current science, Johanns says

28 May 2005

New guidelines for the safe, international trade in beef reflect the latest science, new mitigation procedures, and the low risk associated with bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or mad-cow disease, Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns said on May 26.

Johanns congratulated the World Organization for Animal Health for its adoption of changes in the rules on BSE. 

"The international standard for BSE is now based on the same information that has guided the United States' current practices and the proposed minimal risk rule," he said.

Johanns noted, among other changes, the recognition that products such as boneless beef carry no risk of disease, "without regard to a country's BSE status."

Following is a statement issued by Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns:

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U.S. Department of Agriculture
Office of Communications
May 26, 2005

Statement By Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns Regarding The OIE'S Adoption Of Changes To The International Animal Health Code Chapter On BSE

May 26, 2005 -- I applaud the leadership of the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) in modernizing the international approach to the safe trade of beef products by updating the BSE guidelines to reflect current science.

The United States and several other countries have advocated for guidelines that reflect science, the low risk associated with BSE, and the effectiveness of risk mitigation measures. I applaud the OIE for developing guidelines that incorporate all such factors. The international standard for BSE is now based on the same information that has guided the United States' current practices and the proposed minimal risk rule.

Among other items, the OIE has now officially recognized additions to the list of non-risk products-most significantly to include boneless beef that can be traded without regard to a country's BSE status. "The OIE has also adopted a new, streamlined system for classifying countries according to relative risk for BSE in a manner that reflects the steps they have implemented to manage and reduce that risk.

We look forward to working with other countries to amend regulations to reflect these guidelines, which will continue to promote our first objective of safeguarding animal and human health.

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(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)